Overview
 Ethernet
 Hubs, bridges, and switches
 Wireless links and LANs
Switches: dedicated access
 Switch with many
interfaces
 Hosts have direct
connection to switch
 No collisions; full duplex
Switching: A-to-A’ and B-to-B’
simultaneously, no collisions
A
C’
B
switch
C
B’
A’
More on Switches
 cut-through switching: frame forwarded
from input to output port without first
collecting entire frame
 slight reduction in latency
 combinations of shared/dedicated,
10/100/1000 Mbps interfaces
Institutional network
to external
network
mail server
web server
router
switch
IP subnet
hub
hub
hub
Switches vs. Routers
 both store-and-forward devices
 routers: network layer devices (examine network layer
headers)
 switches are link layer devices
 routers maintain routing tables, implement routing
algorithms
 switches maintain switch tables, implement
filtering, learning algorithms
Summary comparison
hubs
routers
switches
traffic
isolation
no
yes
yes
plug & play
yes
no
yes
optimal
routing
cut
through
no
yes
no
yes
no
yes
Wireless and Mobile Networks
Background:
 # wireless (mobile) phone subscribers now
exceeds # wired phone subscribers!
 computer nets: laptops, palmtops, PDAs,
Internet-enabled phone promise anytime
untethered Internet access
 two important (but different) challenges


communication over wireless link
handling mobile user who changes point of
attachment to network
Outline
Introduction
Wireless
 Wireless links, characteristics
 IEEE 802.11 wireless LANs (“wi-fi”)
 Cellular Internet Access


architecture
standards (e.g., GSM)
Elements of a wireless network
network
infrastructure
wireless hosts
 laptop, PDA, IP phone
 run applications
 may be stationary
(non-mobile) or mobile

wireless does not
always mean mobility
Elements of a wireless network
network
infrastructure
base station
 typically connected to
wired network
 relay - responsible
for sending packets
between wired
network and wireless
host(s) in its “area”
 e.g., cell towers
802.11 access
points
Elements of a wireless network
network
infrastructure
wireless link
 typically used to
connect mobile(s) to
base station
 also used as backbone
link
 multiple access
protocol coordinates
link access
 various data rates,
transmission distance
Characteristics of selected wireless link
standards
802.16
54 Mbps
5-11 Mbps
802.11{a,g}
802.11b
1 Mbps
802.15
3G
UMTS/WCDMA, CDMA2000
384 Kbps
2G
IS-95 CDMA, GSM
56 Kbps
Indoor
Outdoor
Mid range
outdoor
Long range
outdoor
10 – 30m
50 – 200m
200m – 4Km
5Km – 20Km
Elements of a wireless network
network
infrastructure
infrastructure mode
 base station connects
mobiles into wired
network
 handoff: mobile
changes base station
providing connection
into wired network
Elements of a wireless network
Ad hoc mode
 no base stations
 nodes can only
transmit to other
nodes within link
coverage
 nodes organize
themselves into a
network: route among
themselves
Wireless Link Characteristics
Differences from wired link ….
 decreased
signal strength: radio signal
attenuates as it propagates through matter
(path loss)
 interference from other sources: standardized
wireless network frequencies (e.g., 2.4 GHz)
shared by other devices (e.g., phone); devices
(motors) interfere as well
 multipath propagation: radio signal reflects off
objects ground, arriving ad destination at
slightly different times
…. make communication across (even a point to point)
wireless link much more “difficult”
Wireless network characteristics
Multiple wireless senders and receivers create
additional problems (beyond multiple access):
C
A
B
A
B
Hidden terminal problem
C
C’s signal
strength
A’s signal
strength
space
 B, A hear each other
Signal fading:
 A, C can not hear each other
 B, C hear each other
 B, C hear each other
 B, A hear each other
means A, C unaware of their
interference at B
 A, C can not hear each other
interferring at B
Outline
Introduction
Wireless
 Wireless links, characteristics
 IEEE 802.11 wireless LANs (“wi-fi”)
 Cellular Internet Access


architecture
standards (e.g., GSM)
IEEE 802.11 Wireless LAN
 802.11b
 2.4-5 GHz unlicensed
radio spectrum
 up to 11 Mbps
 widely deployed, using
base stations
 802.11a
 5-6 GHz range
 up to 54 Mbps
 802.11g
 2.4-5 GHz range
 up to 54 Mbps
 All use CSMA/CA for
multiple access
 All have base-station
and ad-hoc network
versions
802.11 LAN architecture
 wireless host communicates
Internet
AP
hub, switch
or router
BSS 1
AP
BSS 2
with base station
 base station = access
point (AP)
 Basic Service Set (BSS)
(aka “cell”) in infrastructure
mode contains:
 wireless hosts
 access point (AP): base
station
 ad hoc mode: hosts only
802.11: Channels, association
 802.11b: 2.4GHz-2.485GHz spectrum divided into
11 channels at different frequencies
 AP admin chooses frequency for AP
 interference possible: channel can be same as
that chosen by neighboring AP!
 host: must associate with an AP
 scans channels, listening for beacon frames
containing AP’s name (SSID) and MAC address
 selects AP to associate with
 may perform authentication
 will typically run DHCP to get IP address in AP’s
subnet
IEEE 802.11: multiple access
 avoid collisions: 2+ nodes transmitting at same time
 802.11: CSMA - sense before transmitting
 don’t collide with ongoing transmission by other node
 802.11: no collision detection!
 difficult to receive (sense collisions) when transmitting due
to weak received signals (fading)
 can’t sense all collisions in any case: hidden terminal, fading
 goal: avoid collisions: CSMA/C(ollision)A(voidance)
A
C
A
B
B
C
C’s signal
strength
A’s signal
strength
space
IEEE 802.11 MAC Protocol: CSMA/CA
802.11 sender
1 if sense channel idle for DIFS then
transmit entire frame (no CD)
2 if sense channel busy then
start random backoff time
timer counts down while channel idle
transmit when timer expires
if no ACK, increase random backoff
interval, repeat 2
802.11 receiver
- if frame received OK
return ACK after SIFS (ACK needed due
to hidden terminal problem)
sender
receiver
DIFS
data
SIFS
ACK
Avoiding collisions (more)
idea: allow sender to “reserve” channel rather than random
access of data frames: avoid collisions of long data frames
 sender first transmits small request-to-send (RTS) packets
to BS using CSMA
 RTSs may still collide with each other (but they’re short)
 BS broadcasts clear-to-send CTS in response to RTS
 RTS heard by all nodes
 sender transmits data frame
 other stations defer transmissions
Avoid data frame collisions completely
using small reservation packets!
Collision Avoidance: RTS-CTS exchange
A
AP
B
reservation collision
DATA (A)
time
defer
802.11 frame: addressing
2
2
6
6
6
frame
address address address
duration
control
1
2
3
Address 1: MAC address
of wireless host or AP
to receive this frame
Address 2: MAC address
of wireless host or AP
transmitting this frame
2
6
seq address
4
control
0 - 2312
4
payload
CRC
Address 3: used only
in ad hoc mode
Address 3: MAC address
of router interface to
which AP is attached
The Current Internet: Connectivity and
Cable
Processing
Modem
Premisesbased
Access
Networks
Core Networks
WLAN
Transit Net
WLAN
Operatorbased
Cell
Cell
Cell
Regional
LAN
Transit Net
Premisesbased
WLAN
LAN
Analog
NAP
Public
Peering
Data
Voice
LAN
Private
Peering
Transit Net
H.323
RAS
H.323
PSTN
DSLAM
Data
Voice
Wireline
Regional